Greater Love Has No Man...

I have been thinking about the way people use the word love. A lot of people i have talked to about it lately have said that they think the word love has been devalued. I don't neccasarily agree with that fully or completly... but i do to a certain degree, and here is why. There are a lot of things that i love, for example I love my parents, but i also love my iPod. The iPod does nothing except provide me with entertainment, whereas my parents have provided me with everything that i could have needed or wanted. my iPod couldn't do that.... but i love them both. Now am i equating my parents to an iPod..... No! does it cheapen or devalue my love for my parents? Not in the least. because if I was given the choice of getting red of my iPod or never getting to see my family.... the iPod is going out the window rather quickly. Why? because my love for my parents is so much deeper and so much stronger.. and they are so much more important to me. I believe that there are varying degrees of love. I don't however believe that there is a universal scale. Not everyone will value all things the same way or manner as you do. But there is a love that according to God trumps all other loves. Iv'e been reading John alot lately and it has quickly become one of my favorite books and within it i have found one of my favorite verses.. John 15:13 says "Greater love has no man than this, that he lays down his life for his friends." Jesus continues to amaze me. He doesn't say.... has his life taken... he says.... lay it down. Making a conscious choice to put others as more important than you. I don't think that this only stops with our life... but aspects of our life as well. Take pride for instance, are we willing to lay our pride down and admit that maybe.... just maybe someone can do better it better than you, whatever It is. or what about time....are people worth your time are yhou willing to give up a little time doing something that you enjoy... to spend with someone else... if it means bettering a relationship. Jesus also fascinates me in another aspect of this. He again goes above and beyond what everyone else does. He doesn't stop at laying his life down for his friends... but the people who hate him and rejected him as well.. Take a minute... and think about that..... I know that in a heart beat i would be able to lay my life down for my family and friends, but someone that has hurt me or mistreated me..or someone i don't get along with or consider a freinds.... i struggle with that... yet Jesus was totally unbiased in his decision... he didn't say he was willing to lay it down just for the apostles or disciples, he didn't say for everyone but this group or this group of people. but for the sins of the world... not the sins of a few. like i said i struggle with with doing to same for my enemies.... but i take comfort in the fact that the verse says... greater love has no MAN.... which Jesus was so much more than mere man... that tells me that i will never be able to love the way he did... at least not to the degree he does..does that mean i shouldn't try... no not at all i should give it my absolute best... but that also means that i will never be hated and rejected to the degree that Jesus is by some. Just wanted to share some of my thoughts. i would love to hear your thoughts and comments.... or even disagreements... I love y'all (in your respective degrees of course)